Both avenues of psychotherapy and spirituality, if pursued with commitment, should lead in due time to an increased sense of well-being; more capacity to love and be loved; more emotional flexibility and control; more tolerance of self and others; a greater ability to understand and tolerate anxiety, depression, stress, and ambivalence; and, more self-esteem.

What are the tools and techniques of psychotherapy and spirituality?

In psychotherapy one of the main tools is free association. This means verbalizing whatever thoughts and feelings come to mind without censoring them. Other techniques are the analysis of dreams, word slips, fantasies, and defense mechanisms. Next is the analysis of transference. Transference reactions are the irrational and distorted thoughts and feelings toward the therapist. They arise because they were similar thoughts and feelings toward key figures in the patient’s childhood family life such as parents and siblings. We may have transference reactions toward many people daily, both positive and negative. So we find that there are certain people that we like and those we do not like and we may not be sure why. A patient can eventually remember more about the relationship with those past figures. He will have less need to project distorted thoughts and feelings on to others.

Some of the methods utilized on the spiritual path are contemplation, meditation,   unselfish giving, giving of charity pursuits, learning from scriptures, learning from a teacher, devotional singing, and prayer. Contemplation is reflection, such as viewing with awe and loving appreciation of a sunset. Meditation is the practice of substituting a positive thought, feeling, or image for its opposite. For example, one can meditate on the word “peace”. Contemplation and meditation are usually experienced in a quiet place.

What are the respective therapy and spiritual attitudes towards thoughts and feelings?  Both involve the art of observing and reflecting on thoughts and feelings. In therapy this is called the observing ego; in spiritual meditation it is called witnessing. In therapy all thoughts and feelings are, both conscious and from the unconscious are generally welcomed. Feelings such as jealousy, anger, sexuality, sadness, and love can be brought up to be expressed and analyzed.

In the ideal spiritual realm, feelings can also be acknowledged, but they are often seen as obstacles and substituted with positive feelings. Thus hate to be countered with love, instead of being expressed and understood. Similarly anger need not be analyzed. It is dismissed as not that important since it only a diversion from your path. One Indian sage has said that instead of wasting energy on anger, be angry toward yourself for not realizing enough spiritual truths.

Both endeavors are challenged by forces against change and growth. In therapy the process is called resistance. In spiritual life they are referred to as obstacles. In therapy, resistance is anything that gets in the way of the patient’s ability to talk and analyze. Examples of resistance are consistent lateness, missing sessions, not paying, not talking, and talking exclusively about the past and avoiding the present. Analyzing the resistance is important with regards to treatment. If the patient is not encouraged to talk about his fears and anxiety about the sessions and the therapist, there is a good chance that the patient will leave treatment. In spiritual life the teacher will help the student overcome such obstacles as lethargy, self-doubt, loss of faith, feelings of inadequacy, excess pride, and discouragement.

Both pursuits involve commitment, discipline, patience, repetition, and remembering.

Can spiritual endeavors be an aid to those in psychotherapy? Absolutely, because spiritual discernment will give answers and solace in the wake of the eight areas of suffering I have outlined at the beginning of this article. Some psychotherapy patients have enough ego strength to do both concurrently. Others have too little psychic energy left for spiritual pursuits because of their psychological conflicts.

Unfortunately there are psychotherapists that dismiss spirituality in their practice. They claim that it is an unrealistic defense against anxiety, a submission to the infantile need for an omnipotent father-mother. In some cases this is a correct assessment.There is no doubt that spiritual pursuits can sometimes be an avoidance of understanding the source of anxiety and learning how to tolerate anxiety. However, we cannot ignore the knowledge of thousands of years or religious wisdom revealed in the Scriptures, as well as the lives of enlightened Buddhists, Christians, Hindus, Muslims, and Jews. Psychotherapy has only been available for approximately a hundred years. Countless individuals have spiritually evolved so as to effectively deal with the eight sources of suffering and find more peace, happiness, and freedom.



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